Bush's apparent rejection of the <!--http--><a href="http://www.state.gov/www/global/oes/fs_kyoto_climate_980115.html" target="_blank">international treaty proceedings</a><!--url--> for global emission controls rubs me the wrong way. It makes me remember the Reagan years when Watt was our Secretary of the Interior and our chairman was saying things like "there is no such thing as acid rain" and ozone depletion, global warming, etc - while believing it was possible to shoot ICBM's from space using laser guns. There are probably yahoos out there thinking we can build another biodome somewhere if we trash our atmosphere, when the reality is we can not find liquid water anywhere beyond our precious blue planet in th endless expanse of our universe.

Bush questions the growing scientific consensus on the causes and dangers of climate change. The treaty calls for reduction of greenhouse gasses linked to global warming. The US emits roughly 25% of all greenhouse gasses into our atmosphere. The US signed the treaty in 1997 in Kyoto, thus referred to as the "Kyoto Protocol".

What worries me is that the right only care about money; usually for the "haves" verses the "have-nots", and anything that stands in the way is disposable in the near term without concern for the future. Believe me, there are things that bother me about the left too, but that's another story.

By deciding that the world's strongest and richest country shall refuse to participate in a global, United Nations summit to seek consensus on emissions controls to help the environmental health of our sole freely inhabitable planet in the universe, what message is he sending to the world? I feel compromised in the world community as an American citizen by his actions, but officials from the other international participants feel seriously compromised. Although I am no such official I feel I have an equal stake in this and believe the current adminstration's actions are irresponsible to say the least.